Chapter 16 – The First Drop of Blood
For the next month…
My life became painfully ordinary.
Wake before sunrise.
Sweep the tavern.
Carry water.
Wash dishes.
Split firewood.
Train.
Sleep.
Then repeat.
There were no miraculous encounters.
No ancient inheritances.
No hidden cultivation manuals.
Even the Black Devil remained wrapped in cloth, leaning quietly against the wall of my room.
Sometimes I wondered…
Had it truly chosen me?
Or had I simply survived touching it by coincidence?
⸻
One morning, while carrying two buckets of water from the town well, I noticed something.
The buckets…
Didn’t feel as heavy.
I stopped walking.
Confused.
A month ago, I could barely carry one.
Now…
Two felt manageable.
Not easy.
But possible.
“…I’ve become stronger.”
It wasn’t spiritual power.
There was no glowing aura around my body.
No miraculous breakthrough.
Just…
Strength earned one day at a time.
⸻
That afternoon, Master Borin called me into the courtyard.
“Pick up your sword.”
I grabbed the wooden practice sword.
“No.”
He pointed toward the corner.
“The real one.”
My eyes widened.
“The Black Devil?”
He nodded.
“It’s been sleeping long enough.”
I slowly walked over.
Even wrapped in thick cloth…
The sword felt strangely alive.
The moment my fingers touched it…
A familiar warmth spread through my arm.
Unlike before…
There was no unbearable pain.
Instead…
It felt…
Comfortable.
As if greeting an old friend.
Master Borin noticed.
“It accepts you.”
“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to hearing that.”
“You don’t need to.”
⸻
He picked up another wooden sword.
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“Attack me.”
“…What?”
“You heard me.”
“I’ll hurt you.”
“Probably.”
“I don’t want to.”
“I didn’t ask.”
I sighed.
Taking a deep breath…
I stepped forward.
Then swung.
Master Borin casually sidestepped.
My sword cut nothing but air.
Before I could react—
Tap.
The wooden sword gently struck my forehead.
“Ouch.”
“Dead.”
⸻
Again.
I attacked.
Again.
Tap.
This time…
My shoulder.
“Dead.”
Again.
Tap.
My ribs.
“Dead.”
Again.
My wrist.
Again.
My ankle.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Not once…
Did he use enough force to injure me.
Yet every strike landed perfectly.
After nearly an hour…
I hadn’t touched him a single time.
⸻
I collapsed onto the ground, breathing heavily.
“…You’re not even trying.”
“I am.”
“No.”
He shook his head.
“You’re trying to hit me.”
“Isn’t that the point?”
“No.”
He walked over and stood beside me.
“The sword is merely the final answer.”
“The battle begins long before blades cross.”
He pointed toward my eyes.
“Where were you looking?”
“At you.”
“Wrong.”
He pointed toward his feet.
“My shoulders.”
“My hips.”
“My breathing.”
“My balance.”
“A swordsman who watches only the sword…”
“…dies to the body.”
⸻
He demonstrated.
Without warning…
He stepped forward.
It looked slow.
Almost lazy.
Yet somehow…
His wooden sword stopped less than an inch from my throat.
I hadn’t even seen him move.
“…How?”
He smiled.
“You blinked.”
“I don’t remember blinking.”
“Exactly.”
⸻
For the next several days…
Training changed completely.
No more endless swings.
Now…
He taught me how to stand.
How to breathe.
How to walk without wasting movement.
Sometimes…
We spent an entire hour taking only three steps.
It felt ridiculous.
Until I noticed…
My balance had improved.
My footsteps had become quieter.
My body no longer stumbled so easily.
⸻
One evening…
As we returned from training…
A scream echoed through the marketplace.
“Thief!”
A young boy sprinted through the crowded street, clutching a small leather pouch.
Behind him, an elderly woman struggled to keep up.
“My medicine!”
“Please!”
People moved aside.
Some laughed.
Others ignored it.
No one chased him.
The boy ran straight toward us.
Master Borin didn’t move.
Neither did anyone else.
Instinct took over.
I stepped into the boy’s path.
He tried to dodge.
Remembering Master Borin’s lessons…
I didn’t watch his hands.
I watched his hips.
The instant his weight shifted…
I moved.
Not fast.
Not powerfully.
Just…
At the right time.
The boy crashed into my shoulder.
The pouch flew into the air.
I caught it before it touched the ground.
The thief stumbled, rolled across the street, then scrambled to his feet and disappeared into the alleys.
Everything happened in seconds.
Silence followed.
The old woman reached me, panting heavily.
“My medicine…”
I handed her the pouch.
She opened it with trembling fingers.
Inside were several wrapped herbs.
Tears welled in her eyes.
“My husband…”
“He needs these.”
She bowed deeply.
“Thank you.”
I awkwardly scratched the back of my head.
“I… didn’t really do much.”
She smiled.
“You did.”
She slowly walked away.
⸻
That night…
While cleaning the tables…
Master Borin suddenly asked,
“Why did you help her?”
I shrugged.
“I don’t know.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“You don’t know?”
“I just…”
“…felt like I should.”
He remained silent for a while.
Then nodded.
“Good.”
I blinked.
“…That’s all?”
“What else should I say?”
“I thought there’d be some deep lesson.”
He laughed.
“Not every good action needs a lesson.”
“Sometimes…”
“…helping someone is enough.”
⸻
As I prepared to close the tavern for the night…
I noticed something strange.
A small cloth pouch rested on the counter.
It hadn’t been there before.
I opened it.
Inside…
Were five silver coins.
Far more money than I had ever held.
There was no note.
No name.
Only a single folded piece of paper.
On it…
Three words were written in elegant handwriting.
“For your honesty.”
I looked toward the empty street outside.
Who had left it?
The old woman?
Someone else?
Master Borin glanced at the pouch and quietly smiled.
“The city has been watching you.”
I looked at him in confusion.
He added only one sentence.
“In this world…”
“Reputation is worth more than gold.”
Outside, hidden atop a nearby rooftop, a pair of familiar golden eyes watched the tavern one last time before disappearing into the night.
The mysterious traveler smiled faintly.
“So…”
“The boy has chosen kindness before power.”
“Interesting.”
For the first time in centuries…
The future no longer looked the way he remembered.
End of Chapter 16